But I slid my arms around her back and let my eyes slip closed. There was no hesitation in her touch, no fear left at all. This? This was nothing more than pure joy, and it made me just as happy as it did her.
"She's going to need training," Lansin said.
Ayla squeezed again, then straightened so she could face Lansin. "Does she know the whistles?"
"Pretty sure," he said. "But she's not like Holly, Ayla. Pepper is brave and smart. Holly is smart and loyal. They may sound similar, but they will not have the same personalities."
"Neither do Rymar, Kanik, and Zasen," she pointed out. "Doesn't mean one is better. Just means they're good for different things."
"I do not want to know," Lansin teased, grinning at Ayla like she'd understand what he was hinting at.
She grunted, but it was with a smile. "Men are good for more than making babies, you know," she tossed back.
And Lasin roared out a laugh. "Okay. Good point." Then he jerked his chin at me. "I'll send some food over for these girls tonight. Do not be surprised if they bicker about it. They're goingto have to figure out who's in charge, and as much as we might want to, we can't do that for them."
"Dog fights?" I asked, realizing this may not have been a good idea after all.
"No," Lansin assured me. "More like siblings bickering. Growls, snarls, and maybe some teeth clacking, but it'll be fine. Just don't get bit if they do it." And he looked at Ayla. "Do not let your dogs bite anyone you don't tell them to, you hear me?"
She nodded. "Yep. I can do this."
"And," he said, "it's not easy controlling two at the same time. It's why I tend to only take Shadow with me."
"I'll figure it out," she insisted.
"I think you actually will," he said. "Enjoy your new dog, Ayla." Then he turned and simply walked away.
But she spun to face me with her fists clenched by her chest, her arms pressed against her sides, and the biggest smile on her face. Before I could figure out what she was doing, Ayla began bouncing in place excitedly.
"I got another dog? It's real, and not a joke, and she's mine? Actually mine?"
"All yours," I told her.
"And he made this happen all on his own," Kanik said.
"I don't even have words for how wonderful this is," she said, throwing herself against me again to smother me in a hug. "I'll make her perfect, I promise!"
"How about," I said, tilting her so she slipped sideways into my lap, "you make her Pepper. Just show her how to be herself, Ayla. It worked pretty damned good for you."
"Yeah, it did," Kanik agreed. "And I get to tell Zasen, okay?"
"Okay!" Ayla said, hugging me again. "Thank you!" Then she glanced back. "Girls, come!"
And like the best trained dogs, both of them obeyed perfectly.
Forty-Six
Meri
Lessa had taken over Drozel and Omden's room while they were gone. I probably should have been shocked by that, but I actually thought it was sweet. Over the last week, she and I had talked a lot. The real kind of talk, like I'd never been able to do with anyone but Callah and Ayla before. Mostly, we talked about feelings.
I liked it here. She'd been a little surprised by that, since it had basically been forced upon me, but I still did. Ayla had fought to come here, but me? I hadn't been able to imagine such a place, so there'd been nothing to fightfor.That helped Lessa understand, but she said it was a good thing.
She also admitted that sleeping in Omden and Drozel's bed made her feel connected to them. She could smell them on the pillows, she said. I'd never even considered people could have a unique smell. I knew men smelled foul when they sweated, and that places could smell bad, but after she'd mentioned it, I'd realized it was true.
Mostly, that was because of the night we'd fallen asleep side by side on the couch. It had been an accident, but the nice sort. I simply hadn't worked up the courage to invite her to do it again.Instead, I asked her what she felt about those men. It seemed safer somehow.
"I don't know," she admitted, piercing a needle through the fabric she was embroidering. "See, Meri, the truth is I've always shied away from that part. When I was younger, I used to think that if I got attached to someone, they'd die."
